Mindfulness Teacher Training
The Deepening Mindfulness & Mindful Communication (DMMC) course offers continuing education for professionals who want to further integrate mindfulness into their daily lives and professional practice, both in the relationship with themselves and with others. As a mindfulness teacher, after completing the teacher training, you will be able to teach the (follow-up) training Deepening Mindfulness & Mindful Communication (DMMC) or integrate its exercises into your own practice.
In addition, the training offers professionals from other sectors, such as mental health counsellors, coaches, teachers and yoga instructors, the opportunity to apply mindfulness more broadly and guide others in mindful communication.
Content
During the training, you will learn how to apply mindfulness in different situations, and be given tools to apply mindfulness beyond the meditation mat. The programme provides concrete tools for mindful and authentic communication, deepening connection with yourself and others, and strengthening the calming system.
In 5 training days you go through both participant training and trainer training. Between the two training weekends, there is a few weeks of space so that the exercises can also be experienced as a participant and practiced in homework groups with each other (physically or online).
The teacher training includes the following learning objectives:
Personal and teacher skills:
Deepening Mindfulness skills: You will learn various meditation forms, including calm meditation, compassion practice and values-based meditation.
Mindful Communication: You develop skills in mindful listening, speaking and responding, including in challenging situations such as conflict.
Increasing body awareness: Through yin yoga and yoga nidra, you strengthen your calming system and body awareness.
Psycho-education: You will increase your knowledge of the autonomic nervous system, emotion regulation and how these systems influence daily interactions.
Teacher skills:
You will learn the structure and content of the six sessions and the practice day of the DMMC training.
You are able to lead the course (or parts of the course if you are not a teacher) independently.
You will become proficient in guiding meditations, communication exercises and yin yoga.
You are also capable of delivering short, impactful lessons.
You gain knowledge about the working mechanisms of the programme.
"Ware communicatie vindt plaats wanneer we niet alleen woorden, maar ook stilte en ruimte delen." – Eckhart Tolle
Contents DMMC programme: meditations, exercises and education
Meditation exercises
– We are adding new meditations to our meditation toolbox to be used as needed.
– Calm meditation, through which we cultivate tranquility and concentration and can use this as needed.
– (Self-) Compassion through kindness meditation and compassion-focused exercises, which helps us in relation to ourselves and others.
– Mindfulness meditation pays attention to the feeling tone of our experiences, further increasing and deepening our understanding of our reactivity.
– Values-focused meditation. We explore how setting an intention allows us to live and communicate more in alignment with our values.
– Elemental Meditation. We increase our body awareness and awareness of interconnectedness.
Communicating Mindfully
– We do exercises with supportive education that provide insight into what happens in contact with others. This gives us more insight into our conditioning and how to free ourselves from it.
– We practice experientially and discover how we can deepen and improve contact, communicate more authentically and, where necessary, prevent miscommunication by noticing what is actually happening rather than how we interpret something.
– The exercises help to calm our system in contact and face contact with more confidence and joy.
– We learn to be mindfully present and listen in a way that is nurturing and helpful to ourselves and those with whom we are in contact.
– We develop the skill of mindful speaking, exploring how to use the qualities of mindfulness when we speak.
– We learn what happens in conflict and practice communicating in a more connected and constructive way
Body-oriented exercises
– We practise yin yoga, a form that helps with stress reduction, strengthening our calming system and promoting a healthy body-mind balance. We will learn accessible poses that make up a short yin yoga class. The individual poses and sequence can also be used in guiding mindful movement.
– We are introduced to yoga nidra meditation and and explore how it enhances the calming system and increases insight.
Psychoeducation and other exercises
– We increase our understanding of needs and values and how to bring them into interactions with others.
– We are introduced to three emotion regulation or motivation systems and exploring their role in our daily lives and interactions and how we can find more balance in them.
– We gain insight into the workings of our autonomic nervous system and calming system along with practical ways to strengthen them.
DMMC Programme: Scientifically-Based and Evidence-Based
Between 2022 and 2024, Maya Schroevers from the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) in the Netherlands, conducted a study on the effects of the DMMC programme. The results were very positive, with significant improvements in body awareness, mindfulness, self-compassion and quality of relationships. Read more.
We draw on a rich variety of methodologies and traditions in the DMMC programme. Exercises have been selected based on their proven effectiveness, complementary nature and their relationship to mindfulness. Where useful, elements have been combined to create new, integrated exercises.
The exercises and education are inspired by the following methods and movements:
- (Interpersonal) Mindfulness
- Nonviolent Communication (NVC)
- Greenzone Communication
- Deep Listening
- Compassion training: Mindfulness-Based Compassionate Living (MBCL)
- Various Buddhist Traditions
- Yin yoga
- Communication courses
- Theatre Sports
For whom is this teacher training suitable?
The teacher training is open to anyone trained as a mindfulness teacher. Meditation facilitators, yoga instructors, aid workers, coaches, teachers, communication teachers and other professionals who work with people and are familiar with mindfulness are also welcome. This could be through a previous MBSR, MBCT or Breathworks mindfulness training, for example, or at least one year of regular mindfulness practice.
After the training, you will be qualified to lead the group course DMMC, provided you have basic mindfulness teacher skills, such as those of an MBSR/MBCT trainer. Otherwise, you can use elements of the programme in your own professional practice or supervise the programme individually.
Practical information
- Duration: Five training days, spread over two weekends
- Cost: Check the agenda for the price in your country or for the international teacher training. See the extensive reading list. The training is exempt from VAT.
- Accreditation: The course is accredited by the Mindfulness Registry (52 points)
- Agenda: For a list of all training days, see the agenda at the bottom of this page
- Are you interested in the teacher training?
Are you interested in the teacher training? Apply directly or contact us for more information.
Literatuur
In addition to the teacher’s manual and the participant workbook, the following literature is part of the teacher training. Depending on availability in the country and language, the literature may vary.
- Book:1. Book: ‘Mindful communication. Speaking and Listening with Wisdom and Compassion’ by Frits Koster, Jetty Heynekamp and Victoria Norton (Routledge, 2023) – self-purchase
- Article:Deepening Mindfulness and Mindful Communication: A Pilot Study on Feasibility, Acceptability, and Perceived Benefits of this Newly Developed Mindfulness-Based Follow-Up Group Program by Maya J. Schroevers, Jun Wang, Zohair Elabd, Frits Koster
- Article:The Improvement of Emotion and Attention Regulation after a 6-Week Training of Focused Meditation: A Randomized Controlled Trial by Carolina Baptista Menezes, Maria Clara de Paula Couto, Luciano G. Buratto, Fátima Erthal, Mirtes G. Pereira, en Lisiane Bizarro
- Article:Mindfulness Breathing – Windmill-Bodhipaksa
- Article: The Six Element Practice – Windmill-Bodhipaksa
- Scientific article: Deepening Mindfulness and Mindful Communication: A Pilot Study on Feasibility, Acceptability, and Perceived Benefits of this Newly Developed Mindfulness-Based Follow-Up Group Program by Maya J. Schroevers, Jun Wang, Zohair Elabd, Frits Koster
- Scientific article: The Improvement of Emotion and Attention Regulation after a 6-Week Training of Focused Meditation: A Randomized Controlled Trial by Carolina Baptista Menezes, Maria Clara de Paula Couto, Luciano G. Buratto, Fátima Erthal, Mirtes G. Pereira, and Lisiane Bizarro
- 4. Digital: A number of video and audio files will be shared during training
For whom is this teacher training suitable?
The teacher training is open to anyone trained as a mindfulness teacher. Meditation facilitators, yoga instructors, aid workers, coaches, teachers, communication teachers and other professionals who work with people and are familiar with mindfulness are also welcome. This could be through a previous MBSR, MBCT or Breathworks mindfulness training, for example, or at least one year of regular mindfulness practice.
After the training, you will be qualified to lead the group course DMMC, provided you have basic mindfulness teacher skills, such as those of an MBSR/MBCT trainer. Otherwise, you can use elements of the programme in your own professional practice or supervise the programme individually.
Practical information
- Duration: Five training days, spread over two weekends
- Cost: Check the agenda for the price in your country or for the international teacher training. See the extensive reading list.
- Accreditation: The course is accredited by the Mindfulness Registry (52 points)
- Are you interested in the teacher training?
Are you interested in the teacher training? Apply directly or contact us for more information.
Literatuur
In addition to the teacher’s manual and the participant workbook, the following literature is part of the teacher training. Depending on availability in the country and language, the literature may vary.
- Book:1. Book: ‘Mindful communication. Speaking and Listening with Wisdom and Compassion’ by Frits Koster, Jetty Heynekamp and Victoria Norton (Routledge, 2023) – self-purchase
- Article:Deepening Mindfulness and Mindful Communication: A Pilot Study on Feasibility, Acceptability, and Perceived Benefits of this Newly Developed Mindfulness-Based Follow-Up Group Program by Maya J. Schroevers, Jun Wang, Zohair Elabd, Frits Koster
- Article:The Improvement of Emotion and Attention Regulation after a 6-Week Training of Focused Meditation: A Randomized Controlled Trial by Carolina Baptista Menezes, Maria Clara de Paula Couto, Luciano G. Buratto, Fátima Erthal, Mirtes G. Pereira, en Lisiane Bizarro
- Article:Mindfulness Breathing – Windmill-Bodhipaksa
- Article: The Six Element Practice – Windmill-Bodhipaksa
- Scientific article: Deepening Mindfulness and Mindful Communication: A Pilot Study on Feasibility, Acceptability, and Perceived Benefits of this Newly Developed Mindfulness-Based Follow-Up Group Program by Maya J. Schroevers, Jun Wang, Zohair Elabd, Frits Koster
- Scientific article: The Improvement of Emotion and Attention Regulation after a 6-Week Training of Focused Meditation: A Randomized Controlled Trial by Carolina Baptista Menezes, Maria Clara de Paula Couto, Luciano G. Buratto, Fátima Erthal, Mirtes G. Pereira, and Lisiane Bizarro
- 4. Digital: A number of video and audio files will be shared during training
Teachers
The training is taught by: Zohair Elabd, Frits Koster and Lidewij Severins.
Training Day 1: Zohair Elabd
Training Day 2: Frits Koster & Zohair Elabd
Training Day 3: Frits Koster & Zohair Elabd
Training Day 4: Lidewij Severins & Zohair Elabd
Training Day 5 + 6 (some countries): Zohair Elabd
Certification
- Certificate of Participation: Upon successful completion you will receive the certificate
- Group teacher DMMC.: MBSR/MBCT or Breathworks teachers can register as a teacher DMMC and add their course to the international schedule at no cost, provided they supervise one training and attend 2 supervision sessions within 2 years of training.
- Supervisor DMMC: Non-certified mindfulness trainers or professionals can register as a facilitator DMMC without supervision. Coaches, psychologists and therapists can also register their individual training at no cost.